A review by tessaays
A House for Mr Biswas by V.S. Naipaul

3.0

3.5 stars - A tough one to review. As many, many others have said, a plot-driven novel this is not. However, I still found it an absorbing read, and the writing is so fluid and lovely you hardly notice the time passing. I really WANT to say it was too long, but I have to (grudgingly) admit that the length is part of the charm. Nothing is cut out, nothing is modified - this is the full, unabridged story of a life, birth to death. The writing is never breathtaking but always charming - elements of Rushdie without the chaos and García Márquez without the surrealism (magic realism minus magic equals.. realism?). I’m glad I read it - I’d seek out more from Naipaul.